LONDON – Believe it or not, Michael Page is not interested in getting the next title shot at 170 pounds.
Despite defeating former champion Douglas Lima in the main event of Friday’s Bellator 267, and arguably becoming the No. 1 contender in the weight class, Page is not looking to be the next challenger for champion Yaroslav Amosov, despite initially stating as such during his in-ring post-fight interview. “MVP” would much rather have a trilogy bout with Lima and look for the stoppage win he was unable to get.
Page defeated Lima in a close split-decision, winning two 29-28 scores and losing 28–29 on one of the judges’ cards. The Englishman will make an effort to get the third fight against Lima.
“In all honesty, I’ll probably push to run this one back again,” Page told reporters at the Bellator post-fight press conference. “Let’s do five rounds, why not? Let’s go longer.
“If by the end of the third round that had happened again, I got two more rounds to find you and finish you properly. I’ve gone from one end to the other and hopefully, I find that balanced middle and finish him.”
Page settled the score with Lima and avenged his only career defeat. The 34-year-old lost to Lima in 2019 in the semi-final of the Bellator welterweight grand prix. He was knocked out in the second round of the contest.
Page is determined to do the same to Lima and cites it as the main reason for wanting the trilogy next. He also doesn’t see fighting for the title as the pinnacle for his career.
“It’s a belt, who cares?” Page explained. “How many people that are titleholders are nowhere near as popular as I am? The belt don’t mean anything. It does obviously, but for me, it doesn’t. That moment right there (the decision win over Lima), there’s so many Bellator belt holders that can’t pull off what I did today.
“I feel like people are drawn to me because of my enjoyment of the sport, not because I’m chasing anything. It’s about my journey and pushing myself. I didn’t get to prove that today. I won but I didn’t make his eyes roll to the back of his head and not get back up. I know I can do it, so I prefer to run it back.”